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Hey, Toronto: Can you spare a dime?

Community groups launch housing "wiki" to kick-start municipal budget
process with new housing plan
Friday, March 2, 2007
Toronto City Hall
100 Queen Street West
Committee Room No.1 (second floor)
9:30 a.m.
TORONTO, March 1 /CNW/ - The City of Toronto can take the lead in ending
Toronto's desperate affordable housing crisis and homelessness disaster for
only one slim dime per person per day, according to a new housing plan to be
released at a special forum at Toronto City Hall on Friday, March 2, in
Committee Room No.1.
At the same forum, the Wellesley Institute will launch its Toronto
housing and homelessness "wiki" - an exciting new on-line tool that will allow
the people of Toronto to share information and ideas, and collaborate on
solutions.
"The health, social, economic and financial costs of the housing crisis
are overwhelming," says Ann Fitzpatrick, on behalf of Housing Action Now, a
city-wide coalition of groups concerned about housing and homelessness. "The
longer we delay, the greater the costs will be. The city must play its part in
investing in housing solutions."
"There are plenty of practical and cost-effective solutions, and our
housing and homelessness wiki offers an important new means to build towards
housing successes," says Michael Shapcott, Senior Fellow at the Wellesley
Institute. This year, there hasn't been any public consultation as the City of
Toronto prepares its operating budget of almost $8 billion. The Toronto
housing and homelessness wiki will allow the people of Toronto to have a say
in the municipal budget by collecting ideas and actions and feeding them into
the budget process.
Speakers at the Friday forum include:
- Amanda Jeans, Manager Adult Programs, Davenport Perth Neighbourhood
Centre
- Michael Shapcott, Senior Fellow, The Wellesley Institute
- Cathy Crowe, Street Nurse, Toronto Disaster Relief Committee
- Francisco Rico, Co-Director, FCJ Refugee Centre